Fresh off of a Rose Bowl win the Buckeyes have yet another reason to celebrate tonight with the verbal commitment of Detroit (Mich.) Southeastern defensive tackle Johnathon Hankins. The 6-foot-3, 300-plus pounder made it official during his basketball team's halftime break on Tuesday afternoon.

The Buckeyes were in a dogfight with the Florida Gators and the hometown Michigan Wolverines until the end but in the end Ohio State ended up prevailing for the three star defensive end. Hankins racked up double digit offers during the process including ones as far away as Alabama and Oklahoma but ultimately the soft-spoken defensive lineman decided to stay close to home, even if it meant crossing state lines and into what many up around there would consider to be enemy territory.

Hankins turned it on during his senior season and recorded 80 tackles and 17 sacks. Nationally it is difficult for schools to find true defensive tackle prospects right out of high school but Hankins does fit the bill and can play multiple techniques on the line if it is called upon.

The commitment of Hankins gives the Buckeyes 16 members in their recruiting class of 2010 and Hankins is the 7th player projected to play on the defensive side of the ball. The class should end up somewhere in the neighborhood of the low 20's once it is all said and done and of course there is room for another defensive tackle in the class with the nation waiting on the word from Philadelphia (Pa.) lineman Sharrif Floyd. Hankins' and Floyd's decisions will have no bearing on one another and there is definitely room for the Bucks to take both if things were to work out that way.

We will have more on the newest Buckeye later this evening as our friends in the Rivals.com network catch up with Hankins after his basketball game to get the latest and what went into this big decision.